Return of the Great White Hope

In the 1980s, many white Americans invested their emotions in a handful of white athletes—athletes both real and fictional. In the last episode of Season One, we explore the popularity of Larry Bird, Gerry Cooney, and Rocky Balboa in the 1980s—three “Great White Hopes” competing in professional sports that were dominated by black Americans.

Bibliography:

Todd Boyd, Young, Black, Rich, and Famous: The Rise of the NBA, the Hip Hop Invasion, and the Transformation of American Culture (New York: Doubleday, 2003).

J. Anthony Lukas, Common Ground: A Turbulent Decade in the Lives of Three American Families (New York: Vintage, 1985).

Carlo Rotella, “The Stepping Stone: Larry Holmes, Gerry Cooney, and Rocky,” in Amy Bass, ed., In the Game: Race, Identity, and Sports in the Twentieth Century (New York:” Palgrave, 2005).